Monday’s Child (is Fair of Face)
by b4bymaya
Summary: After Freddie's death, Ada and the boys are reunited with Kitty St. Valentine, a childhood friend. Love, drama and danger ensues... (Rated M just to be safe)
1. A Sad Start

**Hi! This is my first fanfic _ever_ so it's not that good, but I decided to just go for it. **

**I have slightly changed the ages of some people in season 2: Finn is 17, Ada is 19, John is 20. Everyone else stays the same age!**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 _I don't own anything but my OC, although I really wish I did..._

* * *

"Kitty!" Ada called as she noticed the familiar pale girl walk quickly away from the funeral, her black dress child-like and controversially short as always.

Polly sped after her niece, holding little Karl on her hip, "How old is she now? 3 years younger than you…" She looked up and did the calculation, "So just turned 17? Almost the same age as Finn!" Ada ignored her aunt and continued to call the girl, until, finally, she turned around.

The unusual combination of glowing pallid skin, dark brown eyes and almost clear blonde hair singled her out in any crow, Kitty shaped her rosy lips into a slight smile and her eyes sparkled. "Ada!" She said in her sumptuous London accent as she extended her arms flamboyantly, the only Shelby sister ran into them and they hugged.

"Let's catch up, do you have anywhere to be?" Ada said into her shoulder.

Kitty pulled away and beamed at her, "No darling, I'd love a catch up with you, Polly and the boys, if only I'd had the chance to do the same with my brother." She said as she glanced to the burial place.

Polly had caught up to the pair and took Kitty's cheek in her hand, "Still such a beauty, how are ya pet?"

Kitty strategically avoided the question, "Is this little Karl? My angelic nephew being held by my angelic aunt-in-law. I've missed you Pol." She said as she kissed Polly's cheek and then Karl's. Polly put the boy down and Kitty took his hand, she turned to Ada, "Where are we going?"

"Go to the car, Tommy'll drive us to The Garrison."

Kitty cooed at Karl as they made their way toward the gates of the cemetery, pointing at various features of the chapels and statues situated in the grim place. A few small flowers that hadn't yet withered grew nearby the path and whilst Kitty bobbed down to pick them, her nephew twirled her blonde hair between his small fingers, she ruffled his hair as she stood up and continued the walk.

Ada and Polly walked behind them, whispering feverishly. "I wonder if he's at it again?"

"Don't be silly Pol, she's fine, she's even talkin' again."

"Look at 'er, dressed like that, you know she hates it and she didn't answer when I asked how she was."

"Let's keep an eye out then eh?"

At the car, Birmingham's communist party and the whole family were at the car, chatting and generally acting too happily for a funeral. When Kitty approached, John grinned and Tommy but an unusually warm and genuine smile on his face, "Caroline, darlin' why are you 'ere?" he asked her. Arthur's face had suddenly popped up in the car window and he waved.

"Thomas, John, Arthur, my loves! I'm here because I've missed you all." Her heart fluttered, this was the family she had always felt she belonged in. Tommy was like a father to her and the other brothers always lightened her day, each had such lovely qualities. If only she had had a chance to visit them more often.

"Get in the car Kitty! The lads'll take us, won't you?" Ada said once she and Polly had reached the rabble, they each slid in and the car was nearing full, Kitty put the boy on Polly's knee before she plonked herself down on Tommy's knee in the front seat of the car. She turned toward him and put his hands in her lap as they set off Kitty leaned back and put her head on Tommy's shoulder, he gently squeezed her middle and she giggled in response.

"Anyone done anything interesting recently?" She questioned, scanning the people in the car, "Finny! You've changed so much." Kitty took his hand for a second and ran her thumb over his knuckles.

"You 'ave too."

"So, anything?" She asked again, hoping for more of a response, Ada announced that she was living in London and John revealed that he and Esme had had yet another baby, maybe she had seen little Henry at the funeral? But she shook her head, no, in response - nothing interesting was really said. Mindless chit-chat ensued, about this and about that, until it ceased all at once when they got to The Garrison. Or what was left of it. There was nothing but ash and confetti in the place of what was once a beautiful tavern, the stronghold of the Peaky Blinders.

"Right then, cup a'tea at the 'ouse and then I'm off to see who the fuck did this to our pub." Said Thomas, attempting to control his anger in front of the family, after all, he did have both Ada and Caroline to please today.

They walked from the remnants of The Garrison to the Watery Lane home, in one large cloud of smoke as everyone over the age of 14 had a cigarette in their mouths the whole way, the grey sky and buildings may have looked dull to any onlooker, but it gave Kitty a feeling of nostalgia like nothing else could. Childhood memories of putting on plays, swimming in the (probably filthy) Cut, chasing dogs and playing cards flashed before her eyes, she remembered those years as almost completely pure, unadulterated bliss tarnished by just a single person and severed short by the war.

Everyone crowded round the table, Esme and the children had gotten out of the other car too, so it was a tight squeeze. Kitty greeted all 5 children one by one, there was the 2 twins (born on St. Valentine's day, just like her) who were called Loveday and Valentine, then there was Edmund, Beatrice and little baby Henry. She marvelled at their beauty, John watched on with a little smile on his face, she always did have a knack with kids. Polly pushed her way through to the table holding a silver tray on which she was balancing a teapot, teacups, spoons, biscuits, sugar cubes, tea bags and a little jug of milk.

"I hear you're making good money now, my darlings?"

"Oh yeah, we're proper toffs these days." Arthur chuckled.

"Enough about us Kitty, what have you been up to? Still in school?" Polly asked as she began to serve the large company their tea.

Caroline's facade abandoned its usual pallor and took on a slight pink, "No, no, I'm not in school - although I wish I was," She laughed awkwardly, "I can't say I've done much, you know how dad can be."

"Still livin' with 'im then?" Polly enquired further, this only fed her previous suspicions.

"Yep - Well, kind of, but I'm alright…" She looked down and stirred her tea, she drank it black, no milk or sugar as always, "I'm alright." Kitty said again, as if she was trying to convince herself more than anyone else. Polly raised an eyebrow and glanced over at Ada who was chewing on her lip, she refused to meet her aunt's eyes.

"'Ow about a game of cards then?" Tommy offered in a bid to change the subject, the tension in the room was rising exponentially. "Everyone pair up with one of the kids, let's play Canasta!"

One game turned into 3, then 5, then 9, until 2 hours had passed and Tommy announced that he really did have to go find out what happened to The Garrison. The rest of the funeral party began to disperse until just Karl, Ada, Kitty and Polly were left sitting around the table. Kitty had began to gather herself, she looked sadly around the room, as the sudden realisation that this would probably be her last visit for many years dawned on her. She stood in front of the mirror and tamed a few stray pieces of hair, the long sleeve of her dress slid slightly down her arm and revealed a collection of black and purple marks near a set of small red cuts that stood out on her deathly white skin.

Polly rushed forward and gently took the girls arm, "Kitty, not again?"

She wriggled out of Polly's grasp and put her sleeve back down, holding it in place with her fingers, "There's nothing I can do. It's fine, it's fine, we can't all live perfect lives." She muttered quietly.

Ada suddenly spoke up, "Caroline, come stay with us. If you agree to stay here, I'll come home too."

The Shelby matriarch had a million thoughts whizzing through her mind, this was her chance, the family could come back together again and everything would be good again. She pulled Kitty down to sit down at the table with her again, she spoke quietly, almost in a whisper, "You know I lost my little Anna a long time ago now, but I can't get her off my mind and - and having my other two girls at home would please me more than anything else in the world. Please stay, please."

It wasn't often that Polly pleaded with people, Caroline thought, as she surveyed the face of the desperate woman. In truth, there was nothing she would've loved more than to stay with the Shelby's but her father would die if she ever left. He always said he'd commit suicide if she tried to run away but maybe, for once, she would be selfish. "I'd love to stay, my darlings, but I have no clothes or money, or anything really."

"You're a little slip of a thing! I'll buy you some new ones. Tommy'll buy you anythin' else you need."

Kitty closed her eyes for a second and inhaled deeply, she smiled shyly, "Thank you."


	2. A Longgg Day

**Woohoo! Chapter 2! I feel like this one is written awkwardly at some points but I'm pleasantly surprised I actually got on with it!**

 **Anyway, I'd like to include a bit of a TW for implied abuse the tiniest bit of period appropriate homophobia.**

 **ENJOY!**

* * *

 _As before, I don't own anything but my OC but I really would be the happiest girl on earth if I did._

"Right then pet, we 'ave all the houses joint together now but you're gonna have to bunk up with someone; Ada you can go back in your old room with the baby." Polly said as she gently pinched little Karl's cheeks and kissed his forehead.

"Ade you know I love you but I can't cope with babies at night-time," Kitty laughed, "I don't know if Finn would want me in his room, nor would Arthur. John has a wife now, so I suppose that leaves either Tommy or you, Pol."

"Well I don't mind, whoever you prefer. You can decide later anyway."

The women decided to take a trip to London to get Ada's things and buy Kitty some new clothes, the train journey wasn't too arduous but it lasted an age, as a ride to the capital city always did. Karl sat on Kitty's knee, being his delightful little self, pointing out cows and trees and people.

About an hour in, a man came round with a small cart full of sweet treats and cups of tea and coffee.

"D'ya want anything?" He asked as he stopped at the table.

"Oh no thank you, I don't have any money with me." Caroline answered with her angelic smile.

"That's okay, you and the kid can pick something."

"Oh how divine, thank you." She places Karl on the seat next to her and kissed the bus(train)boy on the cheek before taking 4 dum-dum pops: lemon, lime, cherry and butterscotch. The man with the cart stood stunned for a second, blushing, before he made his way further down the carriage. Kitty's hands were shaking, as always, so she passed two of the lollipops over to Polly who opened them for her.

"Caroline!" Ada gasped laughingly, "I can't believe you!"

"What?" She asked as she put a lime lollipop into Karl's expectant mouth, then the cherry one in her own.

"Why would you kiss a random man? And-"

"It's what's he expected of me, you don't get anything for nothing."

"And how did you get him to give you those for free?"

Polly suddenly butted in to the exchange, "That's what happens when you're beautiful Ada."

"Are you saying-"

"That's not true Pol, Ada's one hundred times prettier than me and she has a better personality to boot."

"How many men have you met who care about personality?" Polly chuckled, "Anyway, it's not all that good being pretty, is it pet?"

Kitty shook her head and carried on watching the world pass past the glass pane, Ada was sat across from her and couldn't help but stare. She _was_ beautiful and her personality was perfect; but she was so secretive. When they were children she always imagined marrying her, until Arthur revealed that women being in a relationship wasn't really normal. So little Ada, aged about 7 with Kitty about 6, decided that maybe she adores her the same way everyone else seemed to and now at 19 she was still having to reassure herself that that was in fact what she felt.

The train screeched to a stop and all the passengers got off in a slow shuffle as those on long haul journeys reached up and pulled their array of bags down to take away with them. Outside, the weather had become ever more frosty and the group ran almost all the way to Ada's tiny London flat.

Kitty smiled disingenuously, "This lovely!" She exclaimed, she didn't want to upset the Shelby's since they'd done her such a giant favour. Plus, considering how dingy the apartment likely was when they first moved in, the decoration was beautiful. Karl had an exquisite crib and the shade on the lightbulb looked like tulip with frilled edges, an exotic orange rug lay in the centre of the bare cement floor and a large gilt-framed mirror took up one wall.

"Shut up Kitty," Ada smiled, "It's horrible, but London's expensive you know."

"Oh I know, I never hear the end of it."

Polly entertained Karl whilst the two girls set about packing up Ada's meagre belongings, as Kitty rooted through the nightstand for anything that could be considered delicate she noticed something. A little organza bag in which 2 big strips of ribbon were sat, one was baby pink and had 'Caroline' and a love heart embroidered on it, the other was baby blue and had 'Ada' and a star embroidered on it. They were tied together by the ends. "Ada, I can't believe you still have these! I used to wonder where mine was all the time."

Ada blushed, "I'm too sentimental I know, I don't know why I kept them."

"No, it's lovely. Let's put them on." Kitty pulled out the bracelets and Ada unknotted them for her and fastened the one with her name on her own wrist, before putting the other on Kitty, who ran her fingers over the cherry red floss and sighed, "You always embroidered so beautifully."

Her eyes welled with tears as she hugged Ada and sniffled, "You don't know how much I've missed you."

"You're going to make me cry silly! Let's pack up and move on, we'll have plenty of time together now." Ada consoled her.

After their quick stint of hysteria they got on with what they were doing and discovered that all the important items housed in the flat fit into 2 small cases, which Ada and Polly carried. The group took the short walk to a small row of shops where Kitty was reluctant to buy anything but the necessary items: 2 blouses, 2 skirts, a dress, stockings and some underwear. Polly threw in some hair ribbons and a small handbag, despite Kitty's adamant refusal.

The trip home was quicker, as always, everything was darker and colder, the people on the train more tired and the tracks bumpier. Kitty herself was almost falling asleep until she jumped awake at the sight of a tall, muscled man, with dark hair and a mousey brown overcoat. Her breath became shaky and she hugged Karl just a little bit tighter, her chin resting atop of his head as he slept.

"Are you okay?" Polly asked, looking over at her in concern.

"Fine, fine." Her hand was out on the table and Ada gently took it to comfort her.

The man turned around, it was him. His eye blazed with fury and he beckoned the girl towards him with a single finger.

"I'm-I've-I'm…" Kitty took a deep breath,"I'm going to the toilet, I'll be back in a second." She said before placing Karl on the seat beside her and basically running away, at such a speed where no one could offer to accompany her. Ada looked back and noticed a familiar man walking slightly ahead of Kitty, but since she couldn't put a finger on who he was, dismissed him as a random passenger and went back to the book she was reading.

In the coal room at the back of the train, Jude Addington had Kitty cornered. He had grabbed her arms and pinned her to the wall of the carriage to prevent any prospect of escape, "Where 'ave you been? Ya dad's missin' you."

Kitty didn't reply, she couldn't bring herself to speak around him, Jude terrified her more than anyone else on earth. He'd cast a dark shadow over her life since she was a toddler and her father had only enabled him, encouraged him even. Now the pair controlled every aspect of her life.

"Answer me child."

"I-I-I-" She sighed in frustration, "I'm visiting an old friend, I'll be back early tomorrow." For once she felt no remorse for her lies.

"Am I not good enough for you now? Fucking some other man? Who?" He shook her, hard, "Who?" He hissed in her ear.

"It's-It's a girl."

"No one told me you were a dyke, to think I proposed to you." Jude snarled at her, with the smug smirk he always seemed to wear.

 _But you forgot to mention I said no,_ Caroline thought to herself, she struggled to get free - Jude laughed maliciously as he held her back with a single hand, eventually he kissed her and left a hickey high on her neck before slapping hard on the cheek and making his way out of the room. Before he exited he turned back and said, "If you're not back tomorrow, I'll hunt ya down. Trust me." Kitty knew what he said was true, he always did like her to know she had no control over anything.

Kitty attempted to gather herself, she tucked some stray hairs behind her ears and smoothed down her dress. Her shaking was hard to control but she tried her best to walk confidently and upright down to her seat, but to no avail, Polly noticed straight away, the change in her demeanour was obvious instantly. They were 2 stops away when Polly said that she had to speak to Kitty in private later that evening.

* * *

At the house, once Karl and Ada had gone to bed (the latter, although unbeknownst to the rest of the household, was still awake, wondering how on earth she had become enamoured with mystery under the guise of an angel) and the boys had sat down to ponder and smoke in the living room, Polly pulled Kitty aside into the bathroom. The former put the plug in the bathtub and turned the tap on.

"Turn around." Polly ordered.

Kitty did as she said and felt her the buttons at the back of her dress being tampered with, "What _are_ you doing Pol?"

"Taking your dress and slip off, arms up kitten."

Kitty followed her orders without another thought, "Why?" After all, Polly had cared for her since she was tiny and the girl wasn't a prude in any form of the word.

"I need to check something." She answered as she looked over the girls bare midriff and thin limbs, she was all angles and blue veins covered with a veil of damaged opaque skin. Stained with bruises and love bites, as well as cuts of varying ages. She looked so frail Polly could've cried, "Who's done this to you Kitty? Don't lie to me pet, is it that Addington still?"

"No, no, it's my own fault, I never get anything done when it should be." Kitty answered, looking down to avoid Polly's eyes.

The older woman circled her, whilst she shook her head and tutted, "And the cuts? It has to stop…Would you like to take a bath?" Polly was of the sentiment that a warm bath improved any and every situation, without fail.

"Yes please." Kitty replied timidly, suddenly overwhelmed by Polly's interrogation - although it was something she received every time she'd visited. Polly always knew what was going on. She turned away while Caroline undressed and climbed into the warm bubbly water, where she sat with her knees tucked under her chin. "I think I'm going to go to bed soon, will you ask Tommy if I'm alright to sleep in his room?"

"Of course pet." And with that she went out the room, Kitty smiled to herself as she heard Polly shouting at the boys to shut up which was subsequently followed by deeper voice and a roar of laughter. Caroline got out of the bath and wrapped a towel around herself, then she dressed. Her new nightgown reached just past her knee, the sleeve just past her elbows, the hems were edged with white lace. After admiring herself in the mirror she sat at the dressing table, waiting for Polly to come and plait her hair.

"Am I alright to come in Kitty?" Thomas's deep voice rumbled.

"Yes!" She called back, when he walked in Kitty skipped up to him and hugged him tight, Tommy lifted her up and stood her on the rose print cushioned stool she had sat on a few moments ago so that they were the same height. Kitty pressed her forehead to his and draped her arms around him like a necklace until Polly bustled in and separated them so that she could braid Caroline's hair for bed.

* * *

In Tommy's bedroom, Kitty sat cross-legged on the bed, she was reading a book out loud to John's children, who had decided they wanted a bedtime story from the newcomer. After one chapter of the Secret Garden, Esme came to collect them. All of the children - including Caroline -went and said goodnight to Polly before they went to bed.

Tommy and Kitty sat side by side on his bed, she leaned her head on his shoulder as they talked.

"Have you been eatin' Kitty?"

She looked up at him and frowned, "Yes."

"Honestly?"

"Today I ate a dum-dum pop."

"What flavour?" Tommy laughed.

"Cherry."

"Well," He lowered his voice to a whisper, "You know I love sweets, I've still got that special tin...You can 'ave some if you don't tell Pol."

Kitty nodded as Tommy inwardly patted himself on the back, the girl had always been an extremely unenthusiastic and picky eater, at some points her disdain had turned into a fear of food but in her youth the Polly's efforts had kept her healthy. Her father, on the other hand, would've gladly let her waste away to suit his companions obsessions with her ethereal appearance. Thomas offered up the tin and Kitty picked out 2 more dum-dums and some liquorice, he kept it on hand in case it would be useful later.

"Since you've asked me an annoying question, I'm going to ask you one. Do you have a girlfriend yet? Or someone you fancy?"

"You know there's no room in my 'eart for anyone but family." He laughed.

"Don't lie to me Thomas Micheal Shelby, I see plenty of pretty girls around Small Heath and it's about time you got married!"

"'Ang on, married?"

"Yes! I want to be a bridesmaid and just imagine how divine your babies would be."

" _absolutely divine?_ " Tommy mocked, "How anyone could ever get tired of the way you speak I don't know."

"Speaking of that, I'm tired..." She yawned and hooked her index finger on her nose as if to comfort herself.

The duo hugged and Tommy ruffled her haired, "Right then, I'll sleep on the floor, you can sleep on the bed."

Tommy got up off the bed while Kitty lied down and got under the covers, she was asleep within seconds.


	3. The Escape

**Chapter 3! I hope you enjoy it!**

 **A slight TW: Abuse**

 **Also I'm sorry if the Tommy/Kitty relationship seems strange, I want to make it a father daughter thing but quite frankly I have no experience to draw from so I'd love advice on how to improve it if anyone has a few moments to comment or something!**

* * *

The next morning Kitty woke up late, very late. She looked at the clock was shocked to see that it was 11:30AM. Not knowing where anyone was or what anyone was doing, she wandered, still half-asleep, into the main betting room where an unbelievable amount of people were rushing around placing bets and counting money. She ambled up to Arthur's desk, weaving between the rabble. His little office alcove was out of the way of the hustle and bustle in the rest of the room. No one had noticed her, or rather, they hadn't bothered to say anything when they did.

Caroline sat on the hair chair and began to fidget with the trinkets on his desk, she was surprised to see there were photos of all descriptions - even a few of young Thomas, smiling and laughing like he did before the war.

There was one photo amongst the collection which caught her eye first, she knew that she oughtn't be snooping but she picked it up anyway. It was of a woman, probably in her early 30s, she had dawn coloured locks and eyes the hue of robins eggs. The lady wore a cream coloured, rose patterned dress and shoes with a low heel, a golden cross on a thin chain adorned her collar. She took on a demure stance: hands clasped, legs crossed and a reserved smile on her face - it was clear she was a woman of God and the complete opposite of the sort of woman Arthur associated himself with (which were usually prostitutes).

Kitty ran a finger over the smooth surface of the snapshot and then flipped it around, on the back a short passage was written in neat cursive in red ink. It read:

'Every Sunday,

As I kneel in the pew,

I pray to God,

That I never lose you!

-Love from, Linda'

Underneath was a small doodle of a love heart and the photograph was dated November 1921, Kitty smiled and put the photo back where she found it as she made a conscious decision to work out whether Arthur _did_ have a sweetheart and how in the world the two could've met.

Amidst the framed photos standing on the wooden desk-top Kitty noticed one in particular, it was a set of 4 photographs of both herself and Ada together over the 4 seasons.

She remembered them being taken like it was yesterday, the first of the series was taken on the 1st January 1913 - Ada was 10 and Kitty was 8, soon to be 9 - Polly had bought a camera for herself over Christmas and the pair had received matching fur coats and hats with little ears. There were unimaginable amounts of snow outside, so they'd spent all day building an igloo and pretending to be eskimos, once they had established their new arctic life they had gone inside and gotten Tommy to smuggle the camera (he, being a good big brother, did without any arguing). Finn, who had been deemed to annoying to help was in the background of the photo, sat inside of the igloo sulking. Ada and Kitty had stood in front of their new house and smiled proudly in their exquisite new clothes, despite their old gloves and red runny noses, they had beamed with pride.

In the second photograph, Kitty was dressed as a fairy, now 9 and Ada was dressed as the queen of hearts in celebration of May-Day. They had danced around the maypole and Kitty had won May Queen, she had received a flower crown and a bouquet. Arthur had lifted both of them onto a branch since neither could climb up in their ornate frocks and after finishing the strawberries, cakes and cola from the picnic Polly had packed they started to mess around. Polly took a photograph of Kitty hanging swinging upside down, her flower crown was hooked around her foot and a one hand was holding her skirt in place while with the other she made sure she wouldn't fall by hanging onto Ada, whose crown was askew and shoe was falling off. They were both in fits of laughter and John's arms made a cameo because he had been swinging on the branch behind them.

The third photo was taken on a weekend away in August, the Shelby's had invited Kitty on a trip to the sea-side. Ada was wearing a navy dress with a sailor style collar, Kitty had wore a white sailor style dress, both donned black boots, tights, red neck-ties and white hair ribbons. All of the Shelby children had bought a wooden boat for a few pence each and raced them across a make-shift pond they made by digging through the partitions between the little pools left from the tide going out. John had won - or so they thought, until they discovered he had pulled the vessel along on a clear fishing line, so Finn was the true winner and he hadn't let anyone forget it for the whole day. This one was a shot of Kitty and Tommy trying to fish Ada out of the sea after Finn had chased her into the water with his toy pedal-car which had been imported from America earlier that week.

The final photo was taken in September, the pair were both dressed beautifully in white dresses, frilly socks, black patent shoes and hair ribbons for their first day of the school year. Polly had told them to sit in the old armchair in the kitchen together and Arthur had suggested they pretend to read 'Five Children & It' together, so they would look 'Scholarly'. It had turned out slightly blurry since Kitty had started hiccuping out of excitement to get to school and meet her new teacher Ada started copying her and the whole photograph was a shambles.

She picked up the frame and stared it it for a moment, as if she was soaking in the happiness of those times through the palm of her hand. She held it to her heart before she held the frame by its hand and made her way into the bedroom to get changed into some of her new clothes, so that she could go on a walk. Kitty put the photo on the mantlepiece then changed into a blouse, a pinafore and frilly white socks (a scandalous fashion statement, to show so much skin at her age), it was much too cold for bare legs but she had always loathed stockings. After a struggle with the buckles of her shoes, which someone else usually did up for her, she pulled on her black coat and stepped outside into the cool autumnal air.

On her stroll around Small Heath, she came to the realisation that she had promised she'd be back home by early this day. First she stopped for a moment and sat down on a bench, "You must be stern with yourself Caroline, unyielding, just like Nanny would want." She mumbled, clasping her hands together, as if in prayer, in an attempt to comfort and encourage herself. Kitty stood suddenly, adamant to get what would probably be the worst experience of her life over with, the girl rushed back to the Small Heath betting shop to find someone to accompany her.

Kitty approached Scudboat with the sweetest smile she could muster as he was clearly busy, "Scudboat, do you know where Polly is? Or Tommy? Or Ada even?"

He glared at her as he counted out the money a small boy had just given him, "Ada's at John's I think, takin' care of the kids, I don't know where the other two are."

"Thank you darling."

* * *

At John's, Ada was sat surrounded by a cohort of children, Esme's cousins and siblings, John's children and poor little Karl stood sulking in the corner. As soon as Kitty stepped into the room he ran up to her and hugged her leg, she kneeled down and wiped the tears from his eyes before she hugged him. Ada looked over at them, smiling but with eyebrows knit, it was clear she was completely overwhelmed by the 15 or so under 12s she had in the room (all of which should've been in school). Kitty and Karl went up and the former hugged Ada before sitting next to her, Caroline moved Ada's hair from her ear then leaned in and whispered, "I need to get my things from home, can we drop the children off at Lees and go fetch it?"

Ada nodded and the pair collected up the rabble of youth, half of them didn't even have shoes or coats despite the weather and once they'd walked up to the camp almost all of them had ran off, most to play with the dogs or to go play football. Only Valentine and Loveday, John's twins, followed them all the way up to Zilpha Lee's caravan because - as they had spent the journey explaining to Kitty - they planned on learning how to read palms, tea leaves and tarot cards.

They both went up and knocked on the door of the home, Zilpha opened it and greeted the children warmly in Romany, inviting them inside. Once her gaze reached the older girls her face took on a stony expression.

"You bought all the kids?"

"Yes, please get someone to keep an eye out for Karl, he's been uneasy today."

Zilpha grunted in response and called something over to a expensively decorated old woman sat in a chair, who nodded and gave a gummy smile to the newcomers. The door slammed shut before them and they went to the train station. The railway ride to what was previously the Thorne - St. Valentine house - but was now just the Thorne household since Nanny had died, was short but jolly, with them both pouring over a crossword some other passenger had left on the seat earlier in the day.

On the walk there Kitty became quieter and quieter until she started shaking so much she could barely walk. Ada reassured her as best she could, it pained her to see Caroline so horribly upset, although any time she her unhappy it had resonated with her. Kitty knocked lightly on the door and Jude popped up almost instantaneously, she could see that he was trying to hold back his rage. "Where 'ave you been Kitty? Important visitors were left waiting this morning, but lucky for you they're still 'ere."

"I'm…uhm…I'm staying over at my friend's - Ada's" she gestured towards her, "longer. I need my things."

"Come in ladies." He answered through gritted teeth, hands itching to knock some sense into the girl, his eyes flittered over Kitty's new friend but he came to the conclusion that she was wholly dull and unimportant, a nuisance at best.

The 'visitors' were sat at the dining room table, two businessmen, respectable and well-dressed — certainly not the type to hire out a prostitute. Jude presented Caroline to the pair with a smirk, "Did I not say she would be worth the wait? 17 so nothing morally wrong there, she just _looks_ young - a man's dream if you ask me! Now, you can do whatever you like with 'er but she's gentle 'erself and a bit of a crier - aren't you Kitty?" He put an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to himself.

Ada stood uncomfortably at the side of them as all the puzzle pieces popped into place and she realised why Polly was always so worried about Caroline.

He repeated again, "Aren't you Kitty?"

"Yes." She whispered quietly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"She's already welling up! Silly girl." He ruffled her hair playfully but his voice had a sharp edge to it, warning her to control herself.

The man sat on the right put out a hand and beckoned her over, "Let's have a quick look before we agree to anything." His companion on the left nodded stiffly as they each took hold of a wrist each, then began inspect all visible parts of her body.

The man on the left broke his silence, "You look like you've been through the wars girl, what 'appened?" Judging by his voice he was significantly less distinguished than he has appeared.

"Well I uhm-"

"As you can see gentlemen, she's a delicate type, like a porcelain doll so any knock or scrape that might be fine for me or you leaves visible marks. An' she's picky, a real baby when it comes to food so she's on a diet of milk an' honey like some sort of fairy, so she bruises even more easily."

' _Said like a true salesman'_ Kitty thought to herself ' _Like a man selling vacuum cleaners door-to-door.'_

The men both nodded at each other and then to Addington, they stood and he eagerly led them up the stairs of the house to Kitty's bedroom, Kitty shot a look of resignation to Ada and reluctantly trailed upstairs behind them.

* * *

Ada took the opportunity to slip away and call Tommy, in hope that he would come and stop this catastrophe before anything drastic happened.

She rang and rang and rang, to Tommy, to John, to Arthur, to Polly - no one replied, by the time she went back to the house the two men were driving away in a discreetly parked motor-car, Jude passed Ada on her way in and said only one thing, "Get 'er out and make sure she never comes back. I've made enough money for a lifetime and her father killed himself last night so no one wants 'er." With that, he stuck a cigarette in his mouth and sauntered away.

The single Shelby sister ran up the stairs (at a pace she hadn't reached since PE lessons in primary school) only to discover Kitty calmly packing up her things into a small suitcase. She was shaking, her face tear-stained and hair dishevelled, yet she was acting so peacefully - it was unnerving.

"Are you okay?" Ada asked as she approached her from behind, hovering a hand above her arm.

Caroline nodded wordlessly and continued to pack her things. She abruptly turned to face Ada and hugged her for a second, then turned around and carried on packing, with Ada throwing in the occasional items that Kitty agreed she would be taking with her. Once they were done Ada took the case and Kitty elected to hold a precious porcelain doll she had had since childhood, Ada had envied her greatly since she first received it and had to admit she appreciated it just as much now.

On their stroll to the station Ada took once last go at getting in contact with Tommy and finally succeeded, albeit half an hour too late. They smoked in silence while waiting for him to arrive and when he did he bore a face of thunder, "Why the fuck would you co-"

"Don't Tom." Ada warned, as she slid into the back seat of the car and Kitty got in the front where she shuffled up to Tommy and hugged his arm. Thomas gently moved some hair out of her face before he put a few fingers under her chin and positioned her to look straight up at him. Something was off - Why were they here of all places?

"Are you alright kitten?"

She nodded wordlessly once again, Tommy looked in the rearview mirror and made eye contact with his sister who shook her head and widened her eyes, hoping that maybe Thomas would know how to sort everything.

"Will you speak when we get home? Or shall I find you a notebook and a pen?" He asked as he started up the car, she shrugged and so they drove away. He remembered her last stint of silence and sincerely wished it wouldn't be like that again.

* * *

Once back at the house, Tommy sent Ada to get Polly (who did so without another word, she knew if anyone could sort the situation it would be Polly and Tommy. No matter how much they got on her nerves and sabotaged their plans they did have everyone's best interests at heart.) While the pair sat in the car, Kitty perched on his lap, her back leaning on the cool window pane on the drivers side. He started to stroke Kitty's hair in effort to console her while he spoke to her, "You can speak to me and Pol you know, we've invited you to come live with us because we love you, everyone adores you. You're part of the family, I'll even adopt you if you want - or Polly can, just so you can legally be counted as one of us. You know Pol and I 'll do whatever you want to make you happy so don't worry about _anything_."

Polly's face appeared in the window of the car, then she swung the door open and entered the vehicle, she slammed the door shut as quickly as possible to stop the cold autumn air from seeping in. She sat down next to the pair on the front seat, putting Kitty's feet on her lap, then messed with the frills of her socks awkwardly as she thought about what to say to make the situation better - Ada had been reluctant to tell her very much, "Aren't you talkin' pet?"

Caroline nodded and answered quietly, whilst smoothing down her dress, "Don't worry. I am."

Polly turned her attention to her nephew, "Where were they when you picked them up?"

"The Thorne house."

Kitty began to tear up, so Tommy asked her what happened again, with shaking hands she began fidgeting with the button on her blouse until finally she choked out, "Dad's dead."

"Oh lord, I'm so sorry pet." Polly put a hand on hers, "Why did you even go?"

"To get my things."

"Is that why you're upset? 'Cos of your dad?" Tommy asked, still feeling like they hadn't got the whole story.

She shook her head in disagreement and looked down, "It doesn't matter." She'd been through the same thing a million times before, what was the point of drawing out the upset for everyone any further?

"Right, well, at least you've got your stuff now." He replied, thinking it wise not to push the subject any further for fear he'd make matters worse.

Caroline nodded again and thought for a second, she came to the notion that she had had a bad day and deserved a treat, so attempted to milk the pity she was receiving to its full potential, "Can we go see Brownie's Little Venus? It's on at the pictures."

Polly and Tommy looked at each other in slight awkwardness, "I think we're both going to be busy pet, will you go with Finn?"

"Yes of course, that'd be heavenly. I haven't caught up with Finny properly, let me go fetch him," With that she opened the door behind her and swung her legs round above the steering wheel before she jumped out, closing the door behind her. "don't worry about waiting - we can walk." Kitty called behind her as she entered the home and walked up the stairs to Finn's bedroom.

After a few sharp knocks on the door she stuck her head round and saw Finn sat on his bed reading, he looked up in irritation.

"Finn Shelby? Is that you? _Reading?_ "

"Very funny, don't say 'ote to the boys." He sighed, "What d'ya want?"

"We're goin' to the pictures. Come on!"


End file.
